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Album Reviews
Album Review: Mika – Live At Parc Des Princes (Universal/Island)
By CMU Editorial | Published on Monday 10 November 2008
Some people love Mika because he’s a little bit mental. Others resent him for that. Proving that there’s strength in numbers, the former of the two camps showed up in their thousands – fifty-five thousand, to be exact – to watch the eccentric falsetto in question play his biggest concert yet at Paris’ famously gigantic Parc Des Princes stadium. Like a cross between ‘Moulin Rouge’ and Tim Burton’s version of ‘Charlie & The Chocolate Factory’, Mika’s show is a visual feast of colour and oversized set-pieces, from the inflatable drink cartons rolling all over the crowd to the clowns-on-stilts ambling across the stage – there is nothing boring to look at. Mika runs through all of the familiar hits that saw ‘Life In Cartoon Motion’ sell millions and, as the concert itself lasts for nearly an hour and a half, manages to slip in a few surprises too, including an unpredictably fantastic cover of Depeche Mode’s ‘Just Can’t Get Enough’. Other highlights include Mika’s easily best song to date ‘Happy Ending’, and the two (yes, two of each) versions of ‘Relax (Take it Easy)’ and ‘Grace Kelly’. And that’s not even counting the brief interludes of surreal circus performances while the star of the show slips off for many a costume change. Like Kylie’s famous (and famously expensive) ‘Showgirl’ tour, Mika’s one-off show is a must-see for die-hard fans (and perhaps die-hard fans only). DVD extras include a Making Of documentary and a live performance of ‘Grace Kelly’ on Jools Holland’s ‘Hootenanny’. TW
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